Pebble heating chamber



Patented ct. 28, 1952 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE 1 IhS pvention relates {ipbb ratus.

In one of its more 'specifica pees, it relates to improved pebble heater ohambfrs of pebble heater apparatus; Arh ahthef er its more specic aspects, it relates t6 a improved method of operating a pebble heater' chamber.

Heat exchange units 'which are' commonly called pebble heater apparatus are' conventionally used for many types of gas Heating, treating, and converting processes'. Ciiventlal4 pebble heater apparatus utilize a flowing' fiia'ss f Solid heat exchange material vvhich fivvs'ldowvvardly as a contiguous mass, ordinarily' through two chambers, which chambers are disposed inA Ivertical alignment and connected by' cnstrfictejd throat extending therebetvv'en.` Ga ous 'hat ing material is injected into the lower' portion of the upper of the tvvo chambers and is bassed as a v hot gaseous l'iat exlarig'e ned'iiirl lip'- wardly and in countercurrent ilovv' to the down- Waldly flowing Solid Heat iha'ilge nfteri'l within that chamber. The' vgasebhs heat-s exchange material r'dria'iiif is'I ifi' the form' het combustion gases. Conventional upper chambers of such apparatus', vvhich are" co'mronl'y termed pebble heater chambers," are eem- I nonly provided with separate coYnbu'stin'cha/Jrbers which are disposed adj't vtll'ei IT- tion of th'e pebble heater chamber. Fuel and air" are jctd iit the Separate (ib'rb'ruls'toh chambers ile/'here the'` fuel is battled` sb aste forml hot comb'u's'tioif` gases" which' are then passed iht' direct' exbhahge' with the debitrwardiy flchzvl'rigfl solid vheat n exchange" material within' the pebble heater' chamber. The useA @jf Such Seaalte 66H15 tion chariibe'r pres'fltfs several problems, among which' are, first, thefdjiffi'cu'l'tie's of uiforin dispersion` of the hot gaseous heat eiicharge' material' through' the moving portion o`f` the flowing' solidI heat" ei'rehang'e matial' bed arid, secondliy, requires additional parts which are subjected tb'- the high temperatii-fes utilized Within' th`e` pebble heater charnbe and which parts are subject t considerable deterioration a'lld erro'sion due" to the' high te'irrper'at'u'res used'. n u

In most conventional pebble heater apparatus, large' volumes of pebblesV have been utilized as the solidj heat exchange materialiv Th'vt'erin fpebble's as' used herein" denotes"*any*solici?A refractory material' of iovvabley size andlfo'rtn' having' S'u'cient stiegth t0 withstand' mechanibal pressures: encountered: withinythe: pebble heater apparatus and which is suitable to oarrifplarge amounts of heat' fromA the pebble heater charlibe to" the" lower"v 0I'y gas ll'eaterl Chamber' Witbout rapid deterioration or substantial breakage. Pebbles conventionallyv usedin pebbl'eheater apparatu's`Y are ordinarily' substantially spherical' in shape andA range from about oIlereightl'l` inch `to about oneinch in diameter'.

In high' temperatute processes, pebbles havihg a' atapi er f beg tween abbiitbheefbrth meh aha th lghths irish arjeprefejj ea The* pbb s be' :aimed er a refractetyu materia-1 ith jvvjill 'wlths'ttl temperatures at leastas high ast'h highest temperatura attainedA llh the' pebble heater chamber. The pebbles be eapbl or withstadihg tempjea-tprehahg eb within the apparett-iis.l Rfaetoif rhatelals such as metal alloys!) ceramics; r' otg'lir satisfatory Ir'l'raterial may b e` utilized t fori-rl uch pebbles'. Silicon ca v ide; alumina', berylli; stellite, zircornagr arid mullit' satisfaptorily used tb farm s'ti pebbles @finely be used iadnrxture with h other* or viith other materials. rabble for i rials-, when4 properly M s n e1 very well' lh high terapej-ta e f pipe tvithstafiaih'g tehiy'pefae tures hp te abeat s Pebbles Whittie 11Sed..r1y be eih" i. .91' c'l'i" l ing lupon th' processAV rried o`nvvit'hi pareille:

When* the pebbles are t'vitlidral'vn frrr sub'- st ahtially center 'tht iht'he batteria' er the pebble heater' chamber arr' V're pa'ssd dol'vvrrwail'il inta a gasheat'epf ehathbb te fe'ihi seeohd ing bedof pebblesthe'r'el relatively ystash ht zbpesefhpebbles have b fdp a" tb be friha Within the pebbl'ejheatf c 'harilbh Such' staglhaht zbiies- Ihave (been. forma t6 exist belt ah imaginary eerie hanv'i'i-iallfts vetter apple# at the pebblehoutlet in the bottor'ii' ofthe pebbl'ef iiiber. The v'e'ifte'it afhgle if that ihiagirfay bhe geherally varies betttet'err abbht 40?` aha 120. That cone isndete'rmined the-vrv angle" of slip" of the pebbles'withih the npebble c.haihbet,4 which angle efws'lip varies b't' eeh'- abbut- 3fm atl-a 70 and may be' Vcl'ehje'al gehealflv alsth here betvveen a` horizontal plane and! thS line affV cleavage between stagnant ahw ib'vihs @briesy er pebbles as' the Ypebbles are vvithdravvn tirigl'lT a' crstrieted-` pebble ehtlet in bttbihj f the pebble`bhamber. Itwill' thus be seen that ih" barbe berskhaving largf diameters;- a' large propbr on ory the pebble beds; ther'eih'- are eohtelher tlthin" the staghahtjg pebble zdh'esf dbhhfdy` abbv'e.

Sonie' conventional pebble heater/,app rtu's have beeh; desighedfsa as) te vt'rtjllifte Vpebble ejharhl white-f heb@ eetbare bed" has beenJ decreased sbf aste* eilt pressurer drop the' voluine pebltlesJ h ridliedy` in thel pebble5 heater icha'lrnber'hasiin: xi'ost"y cas'es, proved to be` ins'blfll'c'i'er'itlV pebbles. Another object of the invention is to provide a pebble heater chamber for heating large volumes of pebbles with a heating gas maintained under a relatively slight pressure. Another object of the invention is to provide an improved method for heating large volumes of pebbles. Other` and further objects and advantages will be apparent upon study of the accompanying discussion and the drawings.

Understanding of the invention will be facilitated upon reference to the diagrammatic drawings in which Figure 1 is an elevation, partially in section, of a pebble heater chamber embodying the invention. Figure 2 is a horizontal section taken along line 2 2 of Figure l. Figure 3 is another horizontal section of a pebble heater chamber embodying a modification of the invention which pebble heater chamber has walls which are joined at right angles. Figure 4 is a broken section of a pebble heater chamber showing a baffle embodying a modification of the invention. Figure 5 is a schematic view of a pebble heater apparatus.

In Figure l of the drawing, pebble heater chamber I I comprises a substantially vertically disposed closed outer shell I2 which is closed at its upper and lower ends by closure members i3 and I4, respectively. Shell I2 may be either in the form of an elongated cylinder or may be an elongated chamber, the walls of which are joined at right angles, preferably as a square. losure member I4 may be either flat or conical as shown in Figure 1. The conical form is preferable because in that manner a large portion of the stagnant pebble area is eliminated from the pebble bed, the slope of the bottom approaching the deviation from the horizontal of the angle of slip. Pebble inlet conduit I5 and effluent outlet conduit I6 are provided in closure member I3. Pebble outlet conduit Il is preferably centrally located in closure member I4. Shell I2, which is normally a metal vessel, may be internally insulated by layers of insulation material such as refractory and super-refractory materials. Baffie members I8 are provided within the chamber formed by shell I2 and are alternately disposed so as to extend laterally and downwardly from opposite Sides of shell I2. In that manner, a series of intermeshed or overlapping balies is provided within the chamber formed by shell I2 and that series extends from the pebble inlet end of chamber II at least through the upper portion of the chamber, and preferably, extends downwardly at least a portion of the distance into the lower portion of the chamber. Bafrle members I8 may be provided in a variety of forms. When a cylindrical chamber is utilized as the pebble heater chamber, the lower end or lip of baille members I8 will preferably be in the form of an arc. When that type of baille is used, however, the arcs of the lower ends of the bailes should be in the same direction across the pebble heater chamber. In other words, when the lip of the upper baffle is in the shape of a convex arc with relation to the baille as is shown by a solid line in Figure 2 of the drawing, the lip of the next baffle is in the shape of a concave arc with relation to the baille as shown by the dotted line in Figure 2 of the drawing. The arcs of the lips of the bailies thus extend in the same lateral direction. The lowest baffle in the chamber is preferably of such length that its lower lip terminates in approximately the center of the chamber. In the modication of baiiles shown in Figure 3 of the drawing, in which the cross section of the pebble heater chamber may be in the form of a square or a rectangle, the lower ends of baffle members I3 preferably extend across the chamber parallel to the opposite chamber wall. It will be noted that in chambers utilizing the type of baffle disclosed in Figures 2 and 3 of the drawing, a substantially uniform overlap distance is maintained between baffles. In other words, the pebbles falling from one point on the lip of an upper baie onto the surface of the next adjoining or subjacent bale will have substantially the same distance to travel before falling from the lip of the second baille as a pebble falling from another point on the upper baffle would be required to travel before falling from the lip of the second baille. This may be modified for the lowest baille when it is desired for the pebbles to be discharged onto the central portion of the pebble bed. Raffles i8, shown in Figures 1, 2 and 3, may be perforate in their overlapping portions as shown in Figure 4 so as to reduce the pressure drop through the pebble heater chamber even more than it would be reduced with the imperforate baffles.

Baflle members IS are spaced at their lower ends from the opposite chamber wall and from adjoining bailes by at least 8' diameters of pebbles utilized within the pebble heater chamber. The baffles preferably close between 5A; and 3A, of the cross-sectional area of the chamber. The slope of the baflles I8 within the chamber is at least 15 from the horizontal and is preferably established between. about 35 and 70 from the horizontal so as to insure uniform pebble flow downwardly over the pebble surface. A fluid mass of pebbles I9 is provided in the lower portion of chamber I I so as to extend from the lowest baille I8 through pebble outlet I1 in closure member I4. The stream of ever changing pebbles is also provided so as to cover at least a portion of the upper surface of each of bailes I8. Fuel-air injectors 2l are provided in the lower portion of shell I2 so as to be adjacent the lower portion of the fluid pebble mass in the lower portion of chamber II. Injectors 2i may be provided as shown in Figure 1 of the drawing or they may be moved lower so as to be adjacent the conical closure of chamber I I and may be disposed at any angle which will direct the fuel into the chamber. Injectors 2I communicate with fuel-air header 22 which in turn communicates with air and fuel supplies through air inlet conduit 23 and fuel inlet conduit 24. A plurality of injectors 2l may be disposed adjacent the pebble mass in the lower portion of chamber I I. These injectors may be so positioned as to inject fuel into any horizontal cross-section of the pebble mass. Valves may also be provided in injectors 2l so as to stop or vary the flow of fuel through any given injector.

Shell I2 is preferably of small diameter or cross-section so as to substantially reduce the volume of stagnant pebbles resulting from pebble withdrawal from central disposed pebble outlet Il. With such a reduction in horizontal crosssection of the pebble heater chamber, the fluid pebble mass in the lower portion of chamber II is preferably maintained in a height to width ratio of at least 1.5:1 so as to gain relatively uniform pebble flow. This invention, however, provides a means of recovering heat from flue gases while at the same time maintaining a pebble bed which is relatively shallow in comparison to deep, small diameter beds through which the pressure drop is unduly great.

In the operation of the device shown in Figures 1 and 5 of the drawing, pebbles are admitted to pebble heater chamber I I through pebble inlet conduit l5 and form a contiguous pebble stream which flows downwardly over the surface of pebble baffles I8. When the rate of pebble supply is sufliciently great, the pebble stream flowing in a tortuous or vertically disposed zigzag path downwardly over the pebble baffles is substantially contiguous from the pebble inlet conduit I5 downwardly to the top of the fluid pebble mass in the lower portion of chamber li. A fuel-air mixture is supplied through fuel-air injectors 2i into direct contact with the flowing mass of pebbles in the lower portion of chamber I I and is ignited so as to burn on the surface of pebbles I9 within the bed. The fuel utilized for such a feed is preferably in a gaseous or vaporous form and the amount of air injected `with the fuel should be sufficient to provide an amount of oxygen in excess of that required to support complete combustion of the fuel. This disclosure of the introduction of a fuel-air mixture is contemplated to be broad enough to also include the injection of a fuel-oxygen mixture into chamber The volume of fuel-air mixture injected into chamber II is controlled so as to provide the desired amount of B. t. u.s to heat the downwardly flowing pebbles to the desired temperature. Once ignited, the fuel heats the pebbles to such a temperature that substantially complete combustion is accomplished on the surface of the pebbles in the lower portion of the pebble chamber. Combustion gases formed by the combustion of the fuel on the surface of the pebbles, flow upwardly through the fluid pebble mass and countercurrently take the tortuous or zigzag path taken by the stream of pebbles flowing downwardly over the series of pebble bailles I8. When the pebble bafiles are imperforate, the total ilow of combustion gases is along the surface of the baffle members and the pebble stream supported by the bafiles. rWhen the pebble flow rate is sufficiently great to provide a contiguous stream of pebbles from pebble inlet l5 to the top of the fluid pebble mass in the lower portion of chamber II, the upwardly flowing combustion gases will flow over the pebbles on the surface of bailles I8 and upwardly through the column of pebbles extending between the lip of one baiile and the surface of the next succeeding baille.

Gaseous effluent material is removed from chamber Il through eiiluent outlet conduit I6. In those cases in which baffle member I8 are perforate -in their overlapping sections, the crosssectional area of the perforations in the bailles should be such as to allow only a portion of the upwardly ilowing gas to pass therethrough, thus causing the balance of the combustion gases to follow a course totally countercurrent to the iiow of the pebble stream over the surface of the baffles. Y

The heated pebbles are passed downwardly into gas heating chamber 25 and are removed from the bottom of chamber 25 through pebble outlet conduit 26. Thepebble flow established in the pebble heater will thus be notedto be contiguous at least from the lowest baille in chamber ll through pebble outlet conduit Il of chamber II, through chamber 26 and pebble outlet conduit 26. The extent of contiguous pebble flow may be increased to includeA that portion of pebble flow over bailes i8. l(iaseous materials to be heated, treated, or converted in chamber 25 are apparatus shown in Figures 1 and 5 of the drawpebble inlet conduit I5` through which they are once again admitted into the upper'portion of pebble heater chamber II.

Pebble inlets and outlets of the pebble heater ings should be of such diameter as to be at least as great as 7 or 8 diameters of the pebbles utilizedv within pebble heater apparatus. By such sizing ofthe pebble conduits, bridging of the pebbles within those conduits will be substantially obviated.

Various modifications in baille structure, baille positions, and method of operating the device shown in Figures 1 and 5 of the drawing may be made by those skilled in the art without depart'- ing from the spirit or the scope of the disclosure.

I claim:

1. An improved pebble heater chamber'of pebble heater apparatus which comprises in combination an upright outer shell, closed at its ends; a pcb-bie inlet in the upper end of said'shell; an effluent outlet in the upper end of said shell;

a pebble outlet'in the lower end of said shell; a v

series of intermeshed baille members supported by said shell and disposed through at least the upper portion of the chamberwthin said shell, said baflles being alternatelydispcsed so as to slope laterally and downwardly from opposite sides ofsaid shell and seal opposite sides of said chamber against pebble `and gas flow, the lower end of each said balfle being spaced from the opposite side of said shell and from the top surface of subjacent bales by at least 8 diameters of pebbles utilized within said chamber and the lowest said baille being spaced from the bottom of said shell by at least 1.5 chamber widths; and at least one fuel-air injector in the lower portion of said shell below said baffles.

2. The pebble heater chamber of claim `1 wherein said shell is cylindrical and the lower ends of said bailles are formed as arcs, which arcs extend in the same lateral direction.

3. The pebble heater chamber of claim 1 wherein the side walls of said shell are adjoined at right angles, andsaid baffles have a uniform overlap across the entire width of said chamber.

` LOUIS J. WEBER.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the le of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Germany f May 27, 1935r 

